L.A. Fashion Week

A vintage Valentino harem gown at the "Evening of 20th Century Glamour" fashion show

At the close of a very slim Los Angeles Fashion Week, what stood out was what always stands out in this city: the good old-fashioned glamour. There were three major events (not counting the shoestring-budget, open-to-the-public group shows and new artist showcases like Gen Art and Box Eight) that drew the heavy hitters: The Colleagues’ twenty-first annual luncheon and fashion show by Kevan Hall, benefiting the Children’s Institute; the launch of the What Comes Around Goes Around store; and Cameron Silver’s benefit for Museum of Contemporary Art. To start, Kevan Hall chose to present his collection at the charity benefit that has become the lunch for the ladies who lunch. Each year the Colleagues’ luncheon (where old Galanos suits were everywhere—the man himself also in attendance—and it was all about the brooch!) brings out the grandes dames of Beverly Hills, like Betsey Bloomingdale, Joan Collins, Laura Lee Woods, and Shirlee Fonda, but this year Hall wrangled in some of his biggest supporters, like Angie Harmon, Virginia Madsen, Molly Sims, and Garcelle Beauvais. As the models walked to a sound track of iconic James Bond film themes, houndstooth checks, embroidered leather, fedoras, and an evening trench coat called to mind chic sixties spy girls like Emma Peel and Honey West [both name checked in the show notes]. As usual, Hall let the collection weigh heavily on evening looks, as a vast array of dresses from shirred chiffon goddess gowns to taffeta ball skirts and matelasse blouses appeared. In sharp contrast, New York vintage mecca What Comes Around Goes Around celebrated the launch of its Californian outpost Wednesday evening with a biker-jacket-clad crowd of Hollywood youth, with thrift-store-loving actresses Nicole Richie and Erin Wasson filling the space to capacity. To wrap up the week, Mr. Silver of Decades presented some of the highlights (top) from his boutique’s jaw-dropping collection of vintage to a “who’s who” of the L.A. fashion elite, with Marisa Tomei, Zoe Saldana, Rose McGowan, Liz Goldwyn, and Kelly Lynch in the front row. The show was all color and sparkle, with jewels by H Stern, shoes by Brian Atwood, and a finale that was a rainbow procession of timeless dresses. Despite all the hiccups and pitfalls that L.A. Fashion Week has faced over the years (not to mention the current state of the economy in general), what remains is a city that loves its glamour, and an industry that supports and pays tribute to those that have brought that same glamour to it.